cat /etc/vector-versionThe standard version comes with xfce, I don't know how to do it there. The SOHO version comes with KDE. In KDE, you can rightclick on the panel and choose "Panel Menu" -> "Add application to panel"

In Xfce's desktop menu, the programs that appear in the list under the divider under Settings are those that have a .desktop file in a couple of locations. I don't know what those locations are because I don't use the desktop menu much (I prefer to put program groups in the XFce panel, which I keep at the bottom of the screen). Other people can tell you what the locations are and how to create a .desktop file for an application you want to add to the system menu.

You can also add program launchers and icons to the desktop menu by clicking on Settings in the desktop menu, then on Menu Editor. You'll see three items above Settings in the editor: Terminal, File Manager, Web Browser. Right-click on one of those and click on Add Entry. Select Launcher for the type, then the name you want to see in the menu, then type or find the command that starts the program, then click on the button by Icons and select an icon for the program. If you don't want one of the icons offered, click on Image files by Select Icon From near the top. Then navigate to the directory where your desired icon is and double-click on it. Okay your way out and click on the Save icon near the top of the XFce4 Menu Editor.

That should do it. If there are programs in the system menu (Accessories, Development, Graphics, etc.) that you'd like to have accessible without going through the flyout, you can add them to the top or bottom of the menu the same way. It is very customizable.

This is a pretty abbreviated explanation. You can find out more by opening this location in a browser:file:///usr/share/xfce4/doc/C/xfdesktop.html#xfdesktop-menu-editor

One of the folders Granny mentioned is /usr/share/applications. There you'll find "desktop configuration files" for most programs. You can open those files in mousepad by right-clicking on them . See how they are structured and create new files for programs that are not in the menu. It should work more or less ok as long as the file contains info about what the names of the executable file and icon are. Icons can go in /usr/share/pixmaps.

I've had mixed success with this approach... sometimes the icons only show up after a while... sometimes after restarting xfce, sometimes after a reboot, sometimes after I've used the program... If anyone knows of a better way to manage these bloody icons, I'd sure be grateful.

Sometimes, the icon and desktop file are already there when you install programs from gslapt, but the menu entry takes a while to appear.... maybe I'm missing something, but it just seems a bit random.

Oh, maybe I understood you wrong and you actually want to add icons to the panel and not to the menu.In which case, just do as Granny said, by right-clicking on the panel.

I wasn't talking about the panel, but about the menu. XFce calls it the desktop menu. It's the one you get if you click on the Vector logo on the left of the XFce panel or right-click on a blank area of the desktop.

It's quite easy to add icons to the desktop menu, but not so easy to get them to show up in the Accessories, Development, Graphics, Multimedia, Network, etc., sections. Those are the ones that pick up the items from the .desktop files. However, you don't need to have your applications and icons in one of those sections. You can have them in the place where Terminal, File Manager, and Browser are (near the top of the list by default). You don't need .desktop files for that. You can put them lower on the menu, too, if you like that better.--GrannyGeek

If you want an Opera icon on the XFce panel, right-click on an icon in the panel and select Add New Item. Select Launcher and click Add. A new generic launcher icon will appear. Right-click and select Properties. A Program Launcher screen for New item will come up. Change the name to Opera, add a description if you want one or leave it blank, in command typeopera(assuming the executable is in your path, which it should be). In the box for the path to the icon, find the icon you want, highlight it, and click Open. Click on Close when everything you want for Opera is done (name, icon path, program path).

VL would never be Fedora no matter how much software you install! And thank God! But VL can do everything fedora can do with the same packages installed, so I guess beyond the kernel, init scripts, and compling differences, yes I suppose all distros are the same.